Ownership profile
Who owns Jo-Ann Stores?
Jo-Ann Stores (JOANN) no longer exists as a retailer — all 800+ stores permanently closed by May 30, 2025, following a second Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The brand's intellectual property was acquired by Michaels via its affiliate SVP Sewing Brands LLC. The company's collapse followed over a decade of ownership by private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners, which took it private in a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout in 2011 and later exited via the 2024 bankruptcy restructuring.
Ownership profile
Jo-Ann Stores
Jo-Ann Stores, LLC (formerly JOANN Inc.) — fully liquidated; intellectual property now owned by SVP Sewing Brands LLC, an affiliate of The Michaels Companies, Inc.
Evidence (9)
On June 5, 2025, The Michaels Companies, Inc. completed the acquisition of Joann's intellectual property and private label brands (including the Big Twist yarn line) via its affiliate SVP Sewing Brands LLC.
https://elevenflo.com/blog/joann-2025-bankruptcyJoann filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection a second time on January 15, 2025, citing continued declining sales.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo-Ann_StoresAll 800+ Joann stores across 49 states permanently closed; the final locations shut on May 30, 2025.
https://shopjoann.com/Michaels acquired Joann's intellectual property and private labels but none of its physical stores.
https://chainstoreage.com/michaels-acquires-intellectual-property-private-label-brands-joannLeonard Green & Partners first acquired Joann in 2010 in a $1.6 billion deal; during its more than a decade of ownership, the PE firm saddled the company with debt.
https://pestakeholder.org/news/joann-store-closures-among-many-leonard-green-and-partners-bankruptcies/Joann filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 18, 2024; by April 25, 2024, a federal judge approved the reorganization plan and the company emerged from bankruptcy as a private company owned by its creditors.
https://wwd.com/pop-culture/culture-news/joann-stores-closing-1236929792/GA Group was the winning bidder at auction (as part of GA Joann Retail Partnership with term lenders) to liquidate Joann's remaining assets after the second bankruptcy; it acquired assets in February 2025 and proceeded to close all remaining stores.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/bought-joann-ownership-group-partnership-001537274.htmlJo-Ann Stores was acquired by private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners in a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout announced March 23, 2010, taking it private by March 2011.
https://www.cnbc.com/2010/12/23/joann-stores-to-go-private-in-deal-worth-16-billion.htmlJo-Ann went public again on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol JOAN on March 16, 2021, marking Leonard Green & Partners' effective exit from controlling ownership.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo-Ann_StoresWhat's uncertain
- Jo-Ann Stores no longer operates as a going-concern retailer; all physical stores closed May 30, 2025. This investigation reflects a defunct entity.
- The operating entity Jo-Ann Stores, LLC / JOANN Inc. has been wound down through Chapter 11 liquidation proceedings. Only the intellectual property survives, now held by Michaels via SVP Sewing Brands LLC.
- Leonard Green & Partners' ownership stake was substantially diluted when Joann re-IPO'd in March 2021 (Nasdaq: JOAN); the extent to which LGP retained a minority stake post-IPO up to the 2024 bankruptcy was not independently verified from SEC filings in this search.
- GA Group is described in some sources as a private equity firm, but its precise fund structure was not independently verified from primary sources in this investigation.
- Structure is classified as 'corporate' reflecting that the surviving IP assets are now wholly owned by a Michaels corporate affiliate; the original retail operating entity is defunct.